


That's not what your mom said last night

by thestrangestbyer



Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King, Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Mike has a sexuality crisis, Overuse of cliffhanger endings on every chapter, Spoilers but Mileven break up I don't wanna clickbait y'all w that tag, no sense of direction to this fic like my life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2018-06-28
Packaged: 2019-02-02 12:43:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12726840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thestrangestbyer/pseuds/thestrangestbyer
Summary: A couple of years after the gate is closed on the Mind Flayer, Richie (new to Hawkins) and the Losers club appear to turn Will Byers life Upside Down. Again.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr @oedipus-tozier for more of this Incredible Content ;;;;;)))

 

Moving from Derry, Maine to Hawkins, Indiana was just swapping one small, shitty town for another, as far as one Richie Tozier was concerned. It was just all too funny that his parents half-assed attempts to raise him “right” and give him a fresh start (Read: take him away from his freaky, so-called “queer” friends) had landed them in Hawkins. A town infamous for its disappearances, with rates of missing children the second highest in the States. Second only, of course, to Derry. So, yeah, sure. The freshest of starts. Baby steps, right?

The one silver lining of his suddenly miserable, friendless life had been delivered to him in the form of one Will Byers, The-Boy-Who-Came-Back-From-The-Dead, who'd literally ran into Richie on the first day of school. After frantically scrambling for the small boy’s books, Richie had looked Will Byers up and down, taking in the frayed clothing, the tiny wrists so small they might break in a strong wind and the bowl cut. And he'd decided there and then, as he presented Will with his own textbooks like they were flowers, that they were going to be friends. Him and Zombie Boy, survivors of some weird fucking shit, were going to be the best buddies in all of Hawkins.

Funnily enough, they did actually become friends. Moments after that very same collision, Will had evidently decided that someone should take pity on the scruffy trashmouth and offered to show him around, sit with him at lunch, the whole shezzam (His school appointed “tour guide” had abandoned him not even ten minutes into the day, after his third mom joke and second highly inappropriate comment). But Will, he actually _liked_ Richie's jokes. The first one that he heard, he'd actually giggled into his hand and Richie had had to force his eyes away after staring for an amount of time that wouldn’t be considered normal.

Meanwhile, the party had been…less receptive to Richie's brashness. When he'd been introduced to the group they'd spent half of lunch staring at him, and Will, in stunned silence. The silence might have been brought on by his loud and aggressive interrogation of Mike, over his comic book knowledge, accusing him of being “a fake fan” at least three times. Or maybe it was caused by the way that he'd dramatically declared Will to be his new lover within seconds of sitting down and had spent the entirety of the lunch hour flirting as outrageously as he could. Richie wasn't sure. But, whatever. Will and Richie were well suited in that they were both complete and utter disasters, just in very different ways. And so the party were forced to warm to him simply because he was never not there. Wills position in the party very quickly became WillandRichies spot. Besides, he was pretty sure they all liked him, secretly. Especially El, designated as Will's big sister and protector, who enjoyed seeing Will joking and laughing again the most.  

“'Sup virgins," was Richie's greeting as he swung his lunch tray down. He didn't usually eat lunch with them, preferring to stand around and smoke outside, or sit with some of the theatre kids, or fail to skate under Max’s surprisingly patient and helpful guidance. She'd warmed to Richie the quickest after Will, and she distinctly reminded him of someone he knew that had been equally as badass. A friend from Derry, he supposed. He frowned. Was he friends with a girl in Derry? 

“Dude, pretty sure you're a virgin too,” Lucas said, digging into a sandwich. Richie snapped back into focus. 

“Pretty sure your mom would tell you differently.” Richie snarked and beamed as Will groaned and shoved at his shoulder good-naturedly. The table fell back into normal conversation, Mike and Dustin bartering over their lunch content to make the perfect snack trade deal whilst Lucas and Max were laughing over some in-joke shared between the two of them. Richie took the opportunity to capture Will’s attention. It still took Will aback every time that Richie asked him about his day or made jokes with him. He was used to his place as the quiet one, always referred to in relation to something or someone else (Zombie boy, Mike’s friend, school nerd etc.). He was certain his friends didn't mean to leave him out, it'd just sort of…happened. But Richie always seemed to make Will his number one priority, genuinely caring about his opinion and what he had to say. It was a nice change. More than nice, actually.

“Guess who drove to school this morning, my dear William?” Richie said excitedly and Will’s face split into a wide smile.

“Holy shit, Rich, no way!”

Richie nodded and mimed bowing to an applauding audience before leaning in closer.

“So, I could drive us back to yours? If you wanted, and then we could just hang out together tonight?” His breath tickled Will’s ear as he spoke and he tried not to shiver. Richie came over a lot anyway, but he normally biked over in the evenings, despite Will's protests about cycling in the dark. He also always insisted on climbing through the window every single time because it was “cool”, to Wills continued exasperation.  
(“Richie, I live in a bungalow. And Mom would literally let you move in if you asked.”)

“Sure,” Will said, not even bothering to pretend to think about it. “We could finish off that homework we both have,” he added on slyly. Richie pouted. Will looked away. Puppy dog eyes would not win Will over. They would not. He turned resolutely back to his tray, intent on his food. Richie, unconcerned, reached over and snatched Will’s apple.

  
“Guess I’ll just have to do my best tonight to distract you, then.” Richie said with a leering grin and a wink, taking an obnoxious bite of apple before standing up, stretching, and leaving with a “See ya later, babe” tossed over his shoulder. Will blushed. The others all looked up at his departure before turning matching quizzical eyes on Will, who just shook his head and shrugged. Max eyed him knowingly.

  
“So are we all cycling to Mikes tonight? Or the arcade?” Dustin asked with a yawn. They did pretty much the same thing everyday, occasionally spicing things up with a trip to the movie theatre. 

  
“Sorry guys, I can't,” Will said, apologetically “Richie and I have to study. They all stopped to stare at him. Richie and _study_ were words that didn’t usually go together, ever.  Mike frowned and Lucas raised an eyebrow.

  
“Right,” Lucas said, slowly “You and Richie are ditching the Party, all night, to _study.”_

Will’s blushed deepened but he nodded.

  
“I'd get rid of him if I could. He just can't seem to resist my mom,” he explained, with a serious expression.

  
“Neither can Chief Hopper,” snickered Max and Will smacked her on the arm as the group dissolved into laughter. He couldn't wait to get home.

 

* * *

 

 

 

After school found Richie lounging on Will’s bed. They were working together on their assigned art project. Or rather, Will was working whilst Richie provided an endless stream of helpful art critique, in his poshly accented British Guy Voice. Richie kind of hated drawing, found it dull and became frustrated too fast when his crayon scribbles couldn't keep up with his mile-a-minute mind. But when Will Byer’s handed you his crayons with the same type of reverence that a priest reserved for the holy bible, you took those goddamn crayons and you drew the prettiest picture you could think of. But before Richie could begin his masterpiece, someone hammered on the door of Casa de Byers, interrupting them mid argument.

(“Trees aren't pink and purple, Richie! Our assignment is landscapes not dreamscapes!”

“Ooh dreamscapes, did your therapist teach you that big word?”

“Shut it, Tozier”).

Richie rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling as he waited for Will to return, wondering how high his chances were of being allowed to stay over on a school night. Pretty high, he reckoned, especially if he offered to cook (which, by the way, he was excellent at. Neglectful parents had to be good for something, he supposed). Will’s nightmares had been a lot more frequent, recently, and each night terror “visit” to the Upside Down left Will with even darker under-eye circles. It worried him. The next minute, Wills head reappeared in the doorway

  
“The cavalries arrived,” Will explained with a soft smile and an eye-roll. Everything about Will was simultaneously soft and sharp, Richie had learned. It was fascinating. Dry wit and oversized sweaters. Quiet and unassuming but disgustingly foul-mouthed. His sarcasm delivered with an expression that had the perfect balance between angelic and deadpan.

Richie pouted and groaned dramatically.

“Ugh why?” He whined. “I want alone time with my William!”

Will blushed but shrugged, avoiding Richie’s eyes.

”I don’t know why they’re here, but have to be there. Group meeting, seems serious.” At that Richie sat bolt upright, his eyes raking over Will in worry. Shaking his head, Will grabbed Richie's hand and dragged him out of his room, an act that jarred him from his thoughts: Will rarely initiated physical contact.

In the lounge, everyone had seemingly arrived at once. The party were debating over something, probably science, whilst El and Mike stood a little more off to the side sharing some sort of mushy, blushy silent conversation. From what Richie could tell, the pair seemed to communicate solely through the Power of Love and a mutual agreement to be stubborn shits about everything and anything. Inexplicably, Steve, Nancy and Jonathan were also present and accounted for. Joyce was in the corner putting away shopping and Richie lit up.

“MRS B!” He whooped, making everyone jump. “How's it going, my true Love, the light of my life, sweet angel sent from-

  
“Kid. Stop.” Interrupted Hopper from where he was leaning, eyes never leaving Mike and El. Yikes. For a moment, Richie sympathised with Mike and his unfortunate pops-in-law and made a mental note to never, ever flirt with or tease El around the Chief. Ever. Hopper’s eyes then flicked to Richie and briefly down to the hand that held Will’s which he dropped like a hot rock, forcing himself not to gulp audibly. Will turned to him at the sudden movement, brow furrowed and Richie hastily slung his arm around the boy's shoulders, making him stumble into his side and laugh.

“So, Billy Will, why's everyone suddenly in your house? Is it someone's birthday? Is there cake? Tell me there's cake!” He turned pleading eyes on Will who shook his head solemnly, lips twitching. No-one else answered and Richie took the opportunity to note that there were a total of three baseball bats and a gun abandoned on the kitchen table. One had multiple spikes wedged through the end. Ah.

  
“So, more monsters to fight, then?” Richie asked brightly, and mentally snorted as everyone in the room, except the Byers, El and Hopper, tensed up and exchanged significant looks with each other. Subtle.

  
“We tend to deal with anything to do with the Upside Down as a group, yeah,” Will answered, deliberately casual, but his eyes were fearful and the hand that he had pressed into the small of Richie's back trembled. Okay, so tonight was definitely going to be a sleepover night. Nightmares were clearly forecasted. Mike’s head whipped around so fast Richie was pretty sure he gave himself whiplash.

  
“Wait, you told him?!” Mike exclaimed, horrified. Will shrugged helplessly, glancing at Richie.

  
“Um, yeah?” He offered, unhelpfully. He looked confused. “I thought you guys new that?” A minor commotion broke out.

  
“We never tell a member outside of the party! That's like, rule number one!” Mike accused whilst Dustin began to list the various ways the government would come and take Richie out, becoming increasingly more frantic and graphic in his descriptions. Will crossed his arms.

  
“Lucas told Max everything,” he pointed out.

“It's not the same!”

“Except it really is,” Will said quietly; his voice allowed for no argument. Richie felt his heart catch in his throat for a second, at the implications. He moved his arm from around Wills shoulders to wrap securely around his waist instead, squeezing lightly. Mike tracked the movement, his gaze mutinous, but whatever retort he'd had ready died under Will’s stare. His expression remained mild but there was that little edge of darkness to his eyes that dared anyone to comment. Richie cleared his throat awkwardly to break the silence and Will glanced at his Mom and added “Besides, I checked with the adults first. I'm not that stupid. Mom said it was okay. And Richie has had experience with crazy supernatural crap, anyway.” 

“Yeah!” Richie said with a strange sense of triumph. “You’re not the only town full of crazy shit. This ain't my first monster hunting rodeo.” He said and everyone turned to look at him blankly. Hopper was frowning.

“Explain.” He said flatly and Richie sighed before launching into a jumbled explanation of the mess that had haunted Derry, yet still managing to paint himself in an extremely favourable light. He stumbled over names and exact locations as he recounted the story, vague on some of the details. He remembered fiery hair and someone equally as brave- who stuttered, maybe? And a tiny boy full of anger and more curse words than Richie could come up with. He'd been important, Richie thought. Hell, they'd all been important. But he just couldn't picture their faces. He tried not to dwell on it.

  
“And so we attacked it and I beat that motherfucking clown with a baseball bat” Richie finished, proudly.

  
“I like this kid” Steve interjected and Richie beamed. Will rolled his eyes and poked Richie in the side, hard enough that he yelped.

  
“Don't encourage him, Steve,” he complained, batting away Richie's hand as he tried to ruffle the smaller boy's hair. Everyone else around looked vaguely ill and mildly confused by the story. Richie had spent a disproportionate amount of time on some of the more...inane details. Desrcibing various ice cream flavours he remembered eating before It attacked in vivid detail before suddenly switching to vague tales of playing in sewers, then suddenly and briefly mentioning the violent ripping off of a little boy's arm. Hopper cleared his throat.

  
“I did always wonder about Derry’s missing kids. Infamous between police departments, you know. Still, I really was not expecting that,” Everyone nodded and murmured in agreement. Mike looked impatient but seemed slightly more respectful towards Richie now, as he eyed him. If still oddly aggressive.  
Will took a deep breath, all too aware of eyes on him and the loudmouthed clown-killer boy attached at his hip.

“So,” he began uncertainly “What does the Upside Down want with us now?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're about 16 in this? Or whatever age you're able to drive in the US of A. So just assume they've been chilling since snowball like "upside down who?" And now it's BACK. Sorta

The Upside Down wanted to do something evil. According to the gathered members of the Hawkins local monster-hunting club, the Upside Down was stirring from its slumber. El had “sensed” the darkness, apparently, which, whilst completely terrifying, wasn't the problem exactly. Fair enough, the monsters probably shouldn't be allowed to wreak havoc on Hawkins, or the world. That, Richie could understand. He was pretty experienced himself when it came to defending the world from monsters and fighting against terrifying entities to save his friends and town. No, the problem, when it had anything to do with the Upside Down, was Will.

Funnily enough, it was quite hard to translate and understand the intentions behind a giant shadowy monster of doom. Shadows, apparently, lacked coherent thoughts and plans and also didn't exactly speak English. Fortunately for them, they had their very own experienced translator to hand. One William Byers, who'd gotten up close and personal with the brain of a monster, and who had been rewarded for his traumatic experiences by gaining an intimate connection with this dark, alternate reality.

When Dustin and Mike tentatively suggested that maybe Will and El could open a gate to the Upside Down or visit it, to get a better idea of the monsters, or something, Richie snapped.

“No fucking way,” Richie said, furiously. “What's he supposed to do? Pop in and check in on the Upside Down like, ‘hey, hello, still busy being evil and creepy? Okay-dokey, top notch, carry on whilst we plot to kill you,’?”

  
Mike bristled.

“Obviously not, dumbass, we don't want to put Will in danger, we just need to figure out what's going on in the Upside Down and he's the only one that can visit it and understand it!”

Richie rolled his eyes, his leg bouncing, giving away his agitation and worry.

“Oh, absolutely, because Will poking around in the Upside Down definitely won't make him a target!” Richie retorted, sarcastically. “Doesn't he spend enough time in that freaky dimension as it is?”

The Byers all tensed up, Will flinching. El looked softly concerned. Since his possession, Will seemed to flit in and out of dimensions the way normal people fell in and out of daydreams. Will could enter the Upside Down, that much was true. Although, Will had confessed to Richie that he referred to his “visits” as going to The Inbetween Place, because it didn't feel like it was quite the Upside Down, or as if it even existed on the same plane. They'd discovered Will had this strange ability during his weekly check ups at one of the new, unofficial labs just outside of Hawkins, run by the same, shady government officials as before- but this time they were supposedly “trustworthy” ones. Right. Trustworthy, shady officials.

As far as Richie could tell, these weekly appointments involved a mix of therapy, health tests and lab-rat experiments and often seemed to do more harm than good. He remembered sneaking into Will’s room one night, to find him shaking and crying, curled up tightly on his bed. Richie had held him safely and stroked a hand through Will’s sweat dampened hair, whispering soft nothings to him all night and occasionally pressing kisses to his forehead.

Will had confessed thickly into his chest that the doctors asked him to do _things_. Strange things, with his mind. At this, Richie had hummed curiously in his throat, showing admirable self-restraint by not wanting to pry, and Will had shook his head, understanding the question in Richie’s tone immediately.

“No,” he'd said, quickly “Not like El. It's not quite powers, it's more…all in my head. Like the Upside Down is part of me permanently. A scar, almost” Richie had pulled back to see Will’s hollowed out expression, reaching out to tuck a stray hair behind his ear absentmindedly.

“What do you mean?”

“You remember the tightrope explanation? With the flea?” Will had asked and Richie remembered rolling his eyes. As if Dustin could let them forget. Will had laughed, but nervously, and then swallowed. 

“Well, it's like I can see the rope. And the Doctors…the doctors make me pull on it. And then I'm there again, and I can see this other place, and I have a whole other world in my mind,” he'd paused, teeth worrying his lip and then continued.

“And so I can see the rope, and pull on the rope and, like, untie it, I guess? And it lets them investigate the Upside Down, I think. It's hard to explain.”

Richie didn't remember much else of their conversation, because the details of Will’s time at the laboratory always left him full of white hot anger. Dr Owens seemed to have earned the trust of Joyce, Hopper and Will, to an extent. Joyce, as well, seemed to resent the invasive tests. But she allowed them because she wanted the best for her son. And her grief for Bob was so intense, and her worry for Will was so strong, that it was apparent that she would take every precaution necessary to keep Will’s body uninhabited by monsters.

But the experiments and constant interfering with things that should be left well enough alone set Richie on edge. Especially since they were using Will to further their stupid, dangerous aims. It made Will a target. He'd wondered, holding the small boy as close as he could, what would happen if you pulled the rope too hard. And what would happen to the person left holding the frayed ends?

Now, Richie glared at them all, bitterly, wondering why the world had it out for Will Byers. Did they not see that he'd been through enough shit? He shifted in his seat restlessly. He felt trapped and closed in, a way he normally only felt in his own home. He leaned forwards.

“Do you not think, that maybe, just possibly, Will might deserve a break?” His voice was icy and his sudden stillness was jarring. Richie Tozier did not sit still. Next to him, Will shifted a little uncomfortably and tugged at his arm.

“Richie..” he murmured, but Richie was not going to be silent on this. Especially if Will was going to turn around and say that he didn't mind actually, that he wanted to help. That it was somehow worth risking his life for. Fuck that noble shit. For once he wanted to actually keep the people he loved out of danger, damnit.

“Making Will go into the Upside Down is going to make him a goddamn target,” Richie said and a look of hurt crossed Mike’s face.

“We don't want to make Will do anything! It was just an idea and you didn't even let us explain before you jumped in, idiot! If he did go to the Upside Down, we'd go with him, because you never let a party member go anywhere alone,” Mike said, hotly, “He never has to do anything he doesn't want to! Will is my best friend!”

”So we’re just going to waltz into the Upside Down, no plan, and then what? You’re going to get us all killed, Bill!” 

Mike frowned at him.

”Who’s Bill?” He asked. Richie blinked, a familiar fuzzy feeling in his head. 

“What?” He said, shaking himself a little. “Fuck. I meant Mike.” 

Mike nodded and glanced to Chief Hopper.  

“We’re not going to get killed, Richie.” He said, bluntly. “We’re just thinking out loud.”

  
Richie seemed slightly mollified by Mike’s outburst but opened his mouth to continue arguing, anyway. Mike was Will’s best friend, sure, but Richie was Will’s...more than best friend. There was no way he was letting his stupid look-alike have the last word. Both of them looked at each other like two angry, yappy dogs trying to snap at each other's jaws. Hopper hastily interjected.

“Boys, cut it out,” he said, firmly, “No-one will be doing anything at all right now, are we clear? Maybe Will is our best chance at understanding this thing, but he will not be going in alone and without protection. Understood?”

Richie and Mike nodded, sullenly, like scolded toddlers. 

“We’ll discuss it with Doctor Owens and make a game plan when we have more information. But for now, we sit tight, okay?” Everyone murmured their ascent, Joyce sagging in relief. Hopper glanced at the weapons piled on the table and rolled his eyes. “And goddamnit put the bats and weapons away, Steve.” 

Across the room, Max slipped out from under the arm that Lucas had slung around her shoulders, pecked him on the cheek and grabbed for her board. Lucas turned bright red and h avoided everyone's eyes.

“Sorry, I've gotta go,” she said apologetically, “I'm supposed to be home for 8.”

“I can drive you back, kid,” Hopper offered. “All of you, actually, I need to run by the station."

  
Richie sighed as everyone began to make their goodbyes and grab their stuff. He went to get up, but Will grabbed his wrist in a vice grip.

“Stay,” he demanded and Richie nodded, relieved. He looked over at Joyce in silent request and felt treacherously guilty at how softly she was looking at them both. Because he was completely inadequate and undeserving of their love. He felt like screaming 'I'm not good enough for him, you've made a mistake' but, god help him, he was too selfish to say it out loud, and give Will up. Oblivious to Richie's internal struggle, Joyce gave a small nod, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

El crossed the room to Will, and hugged him tightly and patted his head. She usually spent most of her time at the Byers and never left her family without a goodbye. Just in case.

Max smiled and waved slightly at Will before turning to Richie and squaring her shoulders.

“Tozier, I love you. But you're an annoying little shit and if you ever hurt Will or break his heart, I will crush your tiny wang, and then slowly and painfully end your life,” She smiled sweetly at him and Richie gazed back in petrified awe.

“Yes ma’am!"he saluted in a questionably Southern accent. She glared at him for a few long moments and then nodded, satisfied, and spun on her heel with a toss of red hair. As they all left, she turned back with a wicked grin on her face and added “Oh and use protection, kids!” to Will’s utter horror and Richie's delighted glee. He fake swooned.

“Fuck,” he breathed. “I love her, I'm sorry Will, but I love her. I have to marry her, she's all I've ever wanted and dear god I'm letting her get away!”

He leapt to his feet, suddenly, and ran for the door.

“Lucas! Lucas, dude!” He yelled at the group piling into Hopper’s truck

“Please can I marry your terrifying skater girlfriend? We could have a foursome? It’ll be totally tubular!” He suggested, hopefully. "Me, you, Max and Will, next time we're in Mike’s basement, yeah?”

“No way Tozier!” He heard back, muffled, and then a distinctly disgusted “Not in my basement! Gross!”

Richie snickered as the truck pulled away and ducked back inside, to see all of the Byers, plus Nancy and Steve, staring at him. He froze. Right, don't joke about having a foursome with the baby brother of the family. Bad idea.

Nancy raised an eyebrow.

"...A foursome?" She questioned, amusement colouring her tone, "In my basement?" 

“I won't get him pregnant, I swear!” He blurted before mentally kicking himself. Will dropped his head into his hands.

“Richie…” he groaned as Steve snorted. Joyce looked between them both, despairingly, before bursting into hysterical laughter. Jonathan, who'd become used to Richie's antics, rolled his eyes.

“Mom, stop laughing, you'll encourage him, Jesus.” he complained and Richie grinned confidently, on a roll now.

“Yeah, in fact, Jonny Boy, your Mom encouraged me la-  
Will clapped a hand over his mouth quickly.

“Right, okay, we're going to bed now, bye everyone!” He interrupted and then dragged Richie out of the room, before he could make the situation worse.

 

It was much later at night and they'd finally agreed to sleep. Will was clearly agitated and shaken, though he wouldn't admit anything of the sort to Richie, and so they'd stayed up colouring till 9. And then playing card games until 10, games which were immediately put to an end when Richie suggested they start a round of strip poker, completely seriously. He didn't know what time it was now, as he stared up at Will's ceiling, both of them having fallen into comfortable silence.  

Richie?" Will whispered into the darkness, and Richie rolled onto his side to face him, their noses inches apart.

"Yes, William?" 

"It was really sweet of you to stand up for me like that tonight," he said softly, reaching out to cup Richie's cheek in his hand. Richie's breath hitched. "But I can speak for myself too, you know. If you ever start treating me like I'm fragile or breakable, like Mike and Lucas and my mom all do, then I want a refund on our relationship, okay?"

Richie swallowed and tried to agree, but his brain had short circuited. 

"Relationship?" He asked with forced nonchalance, his comically high pitched voice belaying his nerves.

Will smiled, gently and took Richie's hand in reply and intertwined their fingers together. He shuffled slightly closer, tilted his head upwards and pressed their lips together. A second passed. Another. 

Will pulled back, eyes searching Richie's stunned ones. He grinned.

"Yes, Richie, a relationship." He confirmed with a breathless laugh. A look of amazement dawned on Richie's face, he looked hopelessly open and vulnerable, but he covered it up quickly. 

"Jeez, at least take me out on a date first, Byers," he dead-panned "I'm not that type of lady, good sir. Three dates and a 'meet-the-parents' are required before I even permit a kiss on the cheek, you scoundrel." 

Will raised an eyebrow and pressed their foreheads together, amused at how Richie automatically pulled him in so that they were lying tangled together. Safe. He reached up to slide his hand through Richie's curls.

"Yeah?" He asked, challengingly, "Sure I can't change your mind?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, u can hit me up on tumblr, thestrangestbyers.tumblr.com, I'm always down to talk ryers and write shitty hcs!!!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will had another episode. Richie misses his friends, but how do u miss people U can't remember?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty rushed, so if u see a mistake lemme know lol

In spite of what most people assumed, Richie was actually an early bird. And he hated it. There were very few things in life that he loved unconditionally- food, sleep, his friends and Will- and so it frustrated him to no end that every morning, without fail, his body clock decided to switch on alongside the birds and ruin his slumber. Sleep was one of his favourite things to do and yet he woke up naturally at the crack of fucking dawn. Every single day.

Today, though, Richie didn't mind so much. It was barely light outside and he was perfectly content to lie still in the quiet of the morning, wrapped around his boyfriend. His _boyfriend_. He tested out the word, whispering it out loud in a hushed and awed tone. He wouldn't ever get sick of saying it. He gazed down at the boy in his arms, watching the light and shadows play across his skin. The two of them sleeping together like this really wasn't that unusual. Richie left home whenever he could for sleepovers at the Byers and Will just seemed perpetually exhausted, anyway, so much so that a lot of their time together was spent napping or lazily lying in each other's arms. Richie hadn't thought anything could top the memory of a sunny afternoon with Will leaning comfortably into his side, his hair falling gently over his eyes as he dozed off against Richie's shoulder. But he'd been wrong. Because now when he slept beside Will, it was special. He reached out and brushed his boyfriends cheek with his knuckles, marvelling at how soft and pretty and fucking beautiful Will Byers was. He could do things like that now. Just reach out and touch Will, not just to check that he was safe and beside him, but because he wanted to.

A warm hand came up to cover his own, and he looked down to see Will blinking up at him drowsily, with a small smile. Will pushed his head up expectantly and Richie obliged, amused, by leaning down to kiss him. Will hummed and made a pleased noise against Richie’s lips, tangling his fingers in Richie's hair and tugging gently, pulling him even closer. People thought that Will was shy and timid and quiet. And he could be quiet, sure. But what no one knew or expected was that Richie was the one who kept being surprised by Will. Will, who'd calmly informed them that they were in a relationship without batting an eyelid. Will, who'd been possessed and traumatised and yet still managed to joke about it. He had once managed to trick Richie into wearing garlic around his neck for a whole week when he had innocently suggested it might help keep “potential demons of the Upside Down” at bay. And Richie had fallen for the whole shebang, the wide eyes and open, honest expression. And now, Will had once again blindsided him with his confidence and apparent expertise. And he really meant expertise because, christ, Will was a good kisser. Richie broke apart for air.

“Shit, Byers,” he said, his voice a little high and breathy, to his embarrassment. “Where the hell did you learn to kiss like that?”

There was a pause and something almost like a smirk hinted at the corner of Will’s mouth.

“Your Mom?” Will ventured, meeting Richie's eyes and they both held eye contact, competitively straight-faced, until neither could hold it in any longer and they simultaneously dissolved into laughter. Will burrowed into Richie's chest as he laughed and Richie felt his heart ache. Not one to deal with anything too heavy or meaningful early in the morning, Richie leant down and blew a raspberry on the side of Wills neck obnoxiously, and then pushed Will away when he tried to retaliate, starting a minor tussle. None of the other boys in the party really play-fought or wrestled with Will. You'd easily catch Lucas punching Dustin semi-affectionately on the arm any day of the week, or see Mike cuff people round the back of the head like some weird professor, but Will was only touched gently- like he was breakable. Richie knew better. He flipped Will and pinned him in place, and grinned down at him.

“I win,” Richie crowed.

“I guess you do,” Will said, breathlessly, surrendering easily. They stared at each other.

“Boys! Breakfast and school! Come on!” Joyce yelled through the door, interrupting the moment. Richie groaned and flopped down onto Will dramatically, who struggled to breathe.

“Get…off!” He wheezed and Richie just laughed, kissing Will’s forehead before bounding out of bed.

When they finally emerged, fully dressed and washed (Will had nearly had to force a toothbrush into Richie's mouth), they were greeted with the sight of Nancy, Jonathan and Steve making breakfast together in the kitchen.

“Steve?! What are you still doing here? I didn't know people your age still had slumber parties?” Richie said, settling at the kitchen table. An awkward silence fell around the room and Richie watched in fascination as all three of the older teenagers studiously avoided eye contact. Nancy turned bright red whilst Steve stood frozen in an honest-to-god apron, as pancakes cooked on the pan, looking as if he was rustling up breakfast for his special someone. Richie glanced between them. Or for his special _someones_ '.

“Oh shit!” He exclaimed, excitedly, grinning like a shark. “It was a “slumber party” slumber party! Not much slumbering, in fact, and a lot more-

“Richie.” Nancy interrupted, firmly. “If you don't shut up I will point out that rather stunning bruise on Will’s neck to Joyce, and I will tell her exactly how it got there and who did that to her ‘beautiful baby boy’.”

Will’s hand flew to his neck with a squeak and he blushed. Jonathan's eyes followed the movement, as he stared, aghast and looking vaguely sick, at his younger brother. They both looked at each other in horror. 

“Oh I know exactly how it got there,” Richie leered but Will elbowed him sharply and he fell silent. They ate breakfast at record speed, Will practically throwing more pancakes onto Richie's plate whenever he opened his mouth. He washed their plates, kissed his Mom on the cheek and pulled Richie out to his truck for school before any more awkward questions could be asked. And also, Jonathan seemed suspiciously close to punching Richie after every one of his comments. A hasty escape seemed appropriate.

The awkwardness of the morning, however, seemed set on following them throughout the day as his friends immediately picked up on the change in Richie and Will’s relationship. The second Max saw them she high-fived Richie, who seemed to be radiating smugness and bubbling happiness.

“Holy shit, Will! Is that a hickey?” Max gasped, pointing and clapping her hand to her mouth in exaggerated shock. Will knew for a fact that she wasn't even shocked, Max just lived to tease him. The drama queen. He sent her a look and she just grinned, unrepentant. Richie wore an annoyingly similar expression. Dustin’s eyes grew wide.

“Man, no way! You guys..?” He gestured between them. Richie nodded seriously.

“Aye, me wee boy,” he said in a shockingly bad Scottish accent. “I did indeed bust out some moves on this wee young lad.”

  
Will stared disbelievingly at Richie whilst Lucas and Max burst into laughter. Mike scowled, watching as Richie slung his arm around Will’s shoulders. Will glanced to Mike and he quickly schooled his features into something vague and indifferent.

“So, you guys, are like, dating now?” He asked as casually as possible. Richie looked at him, knowingly, and narrowed his eyes. Mike felt his heart stop a little. Richie was so perceptive and sharp that Mike always felt as if he had been really _seen_ whenever Richie looked at him, as if Richie could stare right into his mind. He could call Mike out right now for his jealousy and resentment and fear, lay everything out in the open, and Mike wouldn't even be able to deny any of it. He wouldn't be able to lie right now. But Richie just stared at him, curiously, for a long moment that bordered on strange, before pulling Will in closer.

“Yes Mikey Moo, we’re most definitely dating!” He said, nodding enthusiastically, his entire body practically vibrating with excitement . Mike watched as his curls bounced and his hands drummed patterns into Will’s hips. He swallowed. Everyone around him offered their congratulations, sending Will into another blushing fit. Fortunately, the bell rang before anyone noticed that Mike hadn't said anything. Hadn't even smiled at Will. Everyone rushed for class, Richie and Will hand in hand. Mike wished, desperately, that El went to school with him. Although, maybe that would be worse. He sighed, and slung his back-pack over his shoulder as he followed the group. This was going to be a long day.

It was lunchtime. Dustin and Lucas were in the library, studying or something. He couldn't find Will anywhere and he wasn't really sure if he even wanted to find him. Mike tried not to think about what he could be up to, with Richie. He was genuinely really happy for both of them, he honestly was. His feelings were just…complicated. And not something he wanted to deal with. Having ruled the new lovebirds out, he decided to try and find Max, who wouldn't pry or ask him dumb questions and would just skate with him. He felt stupid for the way he'd acted when she first tried to join their party. She was actually pretty cool, now he knew her.

He pushed open the door to the back of the school and stepped outside, scanning around for Max. But instead, he found just one lone figure. Richie was sat on the steps, hunched over, a cigarette dangling from one hand. His happiness from earlier this morning seemed to have been leeched from his body.

Mike carefully sat down next to him but Richie made no move to acknowledge his presence. They just sat together, in a heavy but not uncomfortable silence. Mike wondered absentmindedly where Will was as Richie blew smoke into the air around them. Richie turned to him then, his expression so somber it took Mike aback. He wordlessly offered the cigarette in his hand to Mike who took it, hesitantly, and slowly brought it to his lips. He inhaled self-consciously under Richie's watchful stare. He didn't cough, but his throat burned slightly and bitterness filled his mouth. He wrinkled his nose at the taste, frowning down at the cigarette in his hand. He tried again, as if a second drag would improve the taste somehow. It didn't. Beside him, Richie snorted lightly.

“You look as if that fag has personally offended you, Wheeler.” He commented, prising it from Mike’s hand and bringing it back to his own mouth. The dry warmth of Richie's fingers made Mike shiver in the cool air.

“They taste disgusting.” Mike said, plainly. “How can you even like that?” Richie smiled.

“I don't like them,” he answered, with a shrug. “They just help me think. Or slow down,” Mike laughed, but not meanly.

"I didn't think you did much of that. Thinking, that is." Mike said and Richie mock glared. 

"How dare you!" Richie exclaimed. He tapped his fingers against his temple and winked. “My brain goes a mile a minute, Mikey boy, gotta calm it down somehow.” Mike rolled his eyes, but privately thought it made a lot of sense. Richie did seem to have so much energy he practically bounced of the walls. It must be exhausting. It made sense to want to slow all that down.

 

Richie watched Mike for a while, who didn't seem in any hurry to leave, or make conversation. He reminded him of someone, another leader of sorts, who he remembered as being unerringly calm and collected, just like Mike. It was funny. Richie gained attention for his jokes, his energy and his outrageousness. He was loud and attracted attention. But people like Mike were just given attention, freely. When they spoke, people listened. Mike could be as awkward and dorky as Richie, as any of the Party members, but when he was in Leader Mode, he commanded attention and exuded confidence. He was also annoyingly smart. Richie stubbed his cigarette out in the dirt, aggressively, having come to a decision. He cleared his throat. 

“Mike?” He said, near forcing the words out. God, he hated this. Stupid Mike Wheeler, with his niceness and his talent and likeableness. Mike turned to him expectantly. “I…I need your help.” Mike's eyes widened slightly in surprise, but he quickly masked it, and his eyes searched Richie's, questioningly. 

“Okay..” Mike said, slowly. “What do you need my help with?”

“You're good at finding people. You found El. You helped to find Will.” Richie started to explain. “I need your help to find some people. Some people I think I used to know?” He floundered, scrambled around for the right words. Goddamnit, why couldn't he remember this properly. Why couldn't he remember?

“I lost them. My friends. I can’t remember, this place is making me forget.” Yes, he thought, that sounded right. His friends. His best friends. Mike stared at him with a troubled expression and Richie realised that his hands were shaking. How embarrassing.

“Please, Mike.” He implored, “I need you to help me find my friends. I think it was the…clown? It. It made me forget.”

With an unreadable expression, Mike put an arm around Richie and held him close.  Richie's entire body was trembling, he just couldn't remember half of what had happened to him, since he’d moved. What the hell was happening in these stupid, godforsaken towns?

“Okay, Richie.” Mike said, finally. He rubbed circles into Richie's back, comfortingly. “I'll help you. I don't know how, but I'll help you. We all will.”

  
As if on cue, Will burst out through the doors, panting as he stumbled across to the pair of them. The two immediately sprang apart as if burned, but Will just stared at the two of them like they were ghosts. Mike shared a concerned look with Richie as they both stood up and went to Will.

“Will!” Richie exclaimed, with forced brightness. “We were just talking about my terrible memory and all my life problems, care to join?” Will didn't answer, just stared at them blankly.

“He's forgotten his friends,” Mike said, with a glance toward Richie, misinterpreting Will's blank look for confusion and hurrying to explain. “The ones he said he fought that clown with.” Will closed his eyes.

“I know” Will said, monotone. Chillingly emotionless. “I've seen them, I see them. El too. Who are they? Why are they here?” He rambled to himself, becoming a little incomprehensible and Mike’s brow furrowed with worry. He'd seen this before. He used his hand to tilt Will’s chin up and he moved his head obediently, like a puppet. Mike felt sick. In the light, the irises of Will’s eyes had lost all of their colour. They were all dark and smoky, like Will wasn't really there.

“Will…” Mike said, tentatively reaching out an arm to grasp his shoulder. “Where are you right now?”

  
To his right, Richie made a pained noise as he realised what was going on. Will was in the Upside Down. Or, 'The Inbetween Place'. He clutched at Will.  
  
“Will? Can you hear me?” Mike asked again, as calmly as possible but his tone was edged with anxiety. Will reached out blindly, fumbling around in the air, and Richie caught his hand easily, interlacing their fingers.

“R-Richie?” He asked, brokenly and Richie nodded, frantically. He gripped Will’s hand tightly.

“Yes Willy-bob, I'm here! It's me, Richie!” Will shuddered, his eyes flickering with movement beneath his eyelids.

“I think they know you, Richie,” He whispered. “I don't understand…”

Richie gaped. He didn't understand either.

“My friends?” He questioned and Will maybe nodded, jerkily, but it was hard to tell. He cried out and his knees buckled and both Mike and Richie lurched forwards to stop him from falling. Richie cupped Will’s face in his hand, repeating his name over and over in panic. Mike glanced between the two of them. Will never stayed this long in his Upside Down visits, he usually had more control over opening it up. Something was wrong.

“Will, it's Mike.” He said, loudly and clearly. “Tell us what's going on.”

  
Slowly, Will’s eyes opened and Mike bit back a gasp. Will’s eyes were completely dark black and unseeing. His entire body began trembling and convulsing and Richie turned to Mike, wild eyed.

“What's wrong with him?!” He yelled but Mike could only shake his head, helpless. They needed help. El, maybe? Hopper, too. Richie could stay and look after Will, he'd need to be quick. Mentally, he tried to formulate a plan.

Will turned his head to Richie. His eyes were still vacant and dead but the hand in Richie's squeezed. Will opened his mouth and shut it, like he was struggling to force words out. He swallowed and opened his mouth again.

“Will? Will!” Richie said and Mike gripped tightly onto Will’s other arm. Come on Will, he thought silently, get out of there.

“H…he,” Will rasped out slowly. He stopped, and stood straighter, pulling himself up against the convulsions that wrecked his body. His empty eyes stared right into Richie's and he spoke up again.

“He thrusts his fists against the posts..” Will whispered and Richie's breath hitched and he froze. Bill. Will seemed to fight for more words but couldn't get them out. And then, suddenly, he sagged as if all life had left his body. Mike scrambled forward, because Richie had gone stock still, rooted to the spot. He gently laid Will down and manoeuvred himself so that Will’s head rested in his lap, so that he didn't have to lie across the cold, hard, concrete steps. Will’s eyelids flickered briefly, and he blinked, slowly. Mike noted in relief that his eyes were back to normal. Finally. What the hell had just happened?

“Richie…” He mumbled, and Mike smoothed hair from his forehead.

“He's here Will. You're okay. We're here.”

Will’s frown eased and he sighed, eyes still closed. 

“Mike..” He murmured, as if in agreement. 

Richie seemed to snap back into reality at the sound of Will’s voice and he crouched down next to Mike. They both held onto Will as he came back to himself, both of them breathing heavily.

“What did he see, Tozier? What the hell did he mean by that?” Mike demanded, glaring, as his heart rate struggled to return to normal. Richie looked down at a gently stirring Will.

“He thrusts his fist against the posts, and still insists he sees the ghosts.” Richie said, softly. Mike made an impatient noise and Richie met his glare with a dazed expression.

“It's Bill.” He said, sounding bewildered and a little broken. “The friends I had, Mike, I think they're in the Upside Down.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Richie n Mike are gonna be best buds yall. They have so much in common: a love for Will, neglectful parents, both are complete dorks etc. 
> 
> As always, comment or stop by thestrangestbyers.tumblr.com for a chat if u want bc I crave that Sweet validation™


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you read this fic note:  
> 1.) Mikes sexuality here is very heavily influenced by my own and so if it seems at any point confusing, it's because I'm constantly confused. Essentially he is disinterested in relationships except Will and Richie really keep throwing him curveballs bc he loves the feel of their dynamic as a three but doesn't know his comfort/limits. 
> 
> 2.) leading on from that point, the rest of the chapters are defo going to be more ryers heavy than the three of them bc I think Mike needs independence or to be alone and is confused by relationships. They will be flirty tho so if u don't like that brot3/ot3 set up, maybe don't read. 
> 
> 3.) If you want me to write anything for this fic or any prompts, either leave them in the comments or feel free to follow me on the tumblr I made for this (thestrangestbyers.tumblr.com) and ask me there! I'm always open to changing some things up bc I have no clue what I'm doing lmao.
> 
> Okay that's all, hope u all enjoy xxxx

Will’s eyes flew open before Mike could even begin to take in what Richie had just said. Immediately, Richie began to fuss, waving his hands around anxiously (and uselessly) as Will coughed and tried to sit up. Rolling his eyes, Mike reached out to still Richie's hands. He flicked Richie on the forehead for good measure.

“Quit hovering and be a good boyfriend, dummy.” Mike scolded and Richie stared at him, open mouthed, before abruptly springing into action. He patted Will on the back through his coughing fit, all the while cursing about not having water for his “William dearest”. Will clung to Richie's side like a koala, visibly drained but apparently lucid and free of the Upside Down. Richie peppered his face with kisses, demanding to know if Will was okay and babbling about how terrified he'd been. Will bore all this with good grace and permitted Richie to panic, smiling gently at him.

“Are you alright, Will?” Mike asked, quietly. Will turned his head and gave a shaky half-shrug.

“I don't know what just happened. When I hear your voice or Richie's that's usually enough to help find my way back.” Will reached out and took Mike’s hand, whilst Richie still held his other one tightly. For a moment, it was as if nothing had happened and they took quiet comfort in each other. Will grounded himself with the feeling of the hands in his, one cold and dry, the other warm and clammy. He looked at them both.

“You're both kind of my lifelines in that place.” Will admitted, with a touch of embarrassment. He expected Richie to make a joke, or for the two boys to argue or take offence over being ranked equally. But to his surprise, Mike and Richie both simply nodded, rather solemnly. Because, in spite of the joy they got from antagonising one another, Mike and Richie were both completely united in their devotion to Will and their willingness protect him from harm. The silence started to get to Richie, however, and he fidgeted. His leg bounced in time with his still-racing pulse and he pressed another kiss to Will’s cheek, just for luck. His Will.

“You hear that Mikey boy? We're the knights in shining armour! The warriors! His saviours, if you will,” Richie joked, desperate to diffuse some of the residual fear and tension left in his heart from seeing Will near possessed again. He leaned over to kiss Mike on his cheek as well. Mike spluttered and jumped backwards like he'd been attacked, aggressively rubbing at his cheek.

“Ew, gross Richie!” He complained and pushed the boy away from him. Will just shook his head at both of them, giggling. A slight sense of calm and normalcy returned, just for a moment, as Richie and Mike shoved at each other and bickered. Will let the moment linger, still holding onto them both so that their “fighting” couldn't escalate too far. Regretfully, he spoke up to remind them of their horrible, present reality.

“Richie, Mike. What I just saw… Something is seriously wrong.” He said, effectively cutting their antics short. “Someone sent me a message from the Upside Down but I couldn't finish it. They said that they knew you, Richie,”

Richie nodded, looking excited and worried and confused all at the same time.

“I mean, my memory is worse than a night spent with Mike’s mom but I knew that saying. It was from Bill.”

Richie winced as Mike punched him in the arm for the mom joke. Will frowned.

“Who's Bill? You've never mentioned a Bill before.”

“Bill was my best friend. He was the leader of the Losers Club, back in Derry. He had a stutter and that saying was a phrase he used that helped him to keep it under control.” Richie answered confidently, and then his eyes widened in surprise.

“What the hell?” He demanded, whipping his head back and forth to stare at Mike and Will in turn. “How did I know that?”

Mike just shook his head.

“If what Will said made you remember this Bill guy, then maybe you're starting to remember all of your friends and what happened. Like a trigger.” Mike suggested and Richie's grip on Mike’s hand tightened painfully.

“I don't understand how I forgot in the first place!” He said, frustratedly. “I know _why_. Because of It and the fuckery of Derry and all these monsters.” He swallowed and blinked repeatedly; his eyes were wet. “I just don't understand how I could've forgotten. All I know is that they're my family, the most important people I've ever known, and I can barely picture their faces!”

Richie choked back a sob and Will immediately reached for him and put his arm around the taller boy’s waist. Richie closed his eyes, looking pained, and leaned into Will.

“Will, why the hell are my friends in the Upside Down?” Will stared at him, helpless.

“I-I don't know.” He said “I don't know. I just saw them there. And I felt.” He paused and frowned for a moment, searching for the right words. “I felt darkness. And terror.” He shivered. Mike nodded to himself decisively, trying to ignore the feeling of dread pooling in his stomach, and stood up.

“We need El.” He said, simply and firmly. “And Hopper and Joyce. I bet this is connected to the darkness El sensed yesterday.” Will and Richie looked at each other. Richie raised his eyebrow in question and Will shrugged. The more help the better, he supposed. He just hated being the centre of attention.

“Okay then” Richie agreed, his voice still shaky. “Let’s go rescue my friends and figure out what the hell is happening.”

Less than twenty minutes later, they were pulling up outside the woody copse where El and Hopper’s little wood cabin was hidden. Mike unbuckled his seatbelt and slid out of his seat.

“I'll get them.” He said. “No point all of us trekking there.” Richie shrugged and Will nodded agreeably. Will had taken Richie's hand over the gear stick and it was sickeningly adorable.

“Cool! More time for making out!” Richie joked, but his heart didn't seem in it. His patchy memory and the unknown fate of his friends had clearly gotten to him. Mike snorted, anyway.

“Too much information, Richie. Make sure that Will stays warm.” He said, looking pointedly at Will, who was white as a sheet and huddled in his jacket. Will made an indignant noise.

“Guys, I can look after myself you know!” He protested and Richie and Mike shared skeptical looks.

“You're really bad at it though, Willy bob.” Richie said and Mike nodded emphatically. Then he caught himself. _Ugh_. He didn't want to side himself with Tozier too much. The sudden shared sense of camaraderie between Richie and Mike was really weird. Mike felt they'd gone from something close to enemies to friends in the space of a few minutes. He wasn't used to it. Will folded his arms sulkily but blushed when both Mike and Richie removed their jackets and tucked them over his lap like blankets. Richie winked.

“I can think of other ways to warm you up, William.” He grinned and Mike rolled his eyes.

“Please, spare me the details.” He groaned. “Alright, I'll be back in a minute.” He headed off, leaves and branches crunching underfoot. Richie gave him a mock salute before turning his attention back to Will.

Mike reached the Hopper's quickly, realising it'd been a while since he'd visited. He traversed the booby traps easily and hoped that there weren't any new ones. Similarly to Will, El was driven around a lot by her adoptive Pops and honorary Mom, Joyce. The difference between El and Will, though, was that Will had his licence and didn't need to be as covert or hidden. He reached the door and knocked, tapping out a familiar morse code greeting. He felt strangely awkward, despite having seen El the day before. Things had been strange between them recently. He stuffed his hands into his jean pockets as the door swung open. Els hands were nowhere near the door handle and he stifled laughter upon realising that she must have used her mind to open the door. It was ridiculously endearing to him that although she could move trains and destroy monsters, the most frequent use of her powers involved levitating eggos closer or changing TV channels.  
El blinked to see him standing in front of her.

“Mike!” She said in surprise. “I didn't know you were coming tonight.”

“We need to talk” Mike said and El immediately said “I know”. He frowned at her. Had she sensed…? He shrugged, assuming she'd just figured shit out as usual, and took a breath ready to start brainstorming a plan with her. 

“I think we should break up.” El said, abruptly, and Mike stopped still. What the fuck.

“Wait, what?” He said, dumbly. El frowned.

“Isn't that what you were here to talk about?”

Mike just stared wordlessly at her. He shook his head in the growing awkwardness.

“We… you.. why?” Mike croaked out and El stared at him. She seemed perplexed by Mike’s shock, and he wondered how long she'd been planning on breaking up with him. And how he'd missed that the deterioration of their relationship had become so extreme that she'd assumed that they were on the same page, and that breaking up was the natural path to pick.

“Mike, the last date we went on was three months ago.” El said, at last, and Mike flinched. He liked dates. He was good at them. He liked holding hands and kissing El on the cheek. But the thought of making out or moving to any kind of base made his palms get all sweaty and his heart race uncomfortably fast. And not in a good way. And as they'd progressed through high school, he'd been putting their dates off more and more, knowing that El would never push him but associating the entire concept of dating with an avalanche of suffocating and confusing emotions.

“I'm sorry!” He said, desperately “I didn't mean to! I just, I don't know-

“Mike.” El interrupted. “It’s okay. I can tell you get uncomfortable.” She placed her hand over his chest, her fingers splayed across his beating heart. He glanced down at her hands and wondered when they'd last been this close, willingly. He closed his eyes. Why couldn't he be normal?

“When we're together, you hurt here.” She said, pressing her hand into his chest. He wished she would stop. “You're confused, Mike. And hurting. I think we both need to figure some things out.”

  
God, he hated when she did this. Just told the truth so simply and plainly. He felt as if he was always completely vulnerable to her and that she could lay bare all of his insecurities and hidden fears. She stepped back from him, seeming to sense his discomfort.

“I want to be Jane Hopper, now.” She added and he couldn't help but listen, avidly, despite wishing she would stop talking. Or that he could stop existing. “I don't want to be El and Mike. You're going to college soon; I want to travel. This…won't work.”

El didn't like to beat around the bush. She was direct and to the point. It was how she liked things and how Hopper had raised her to be. In a way, the bluntness of her explanation was almost a relief.

Mike could feel his eyes burning with tears and he didn't even know why. Or he did. Because El was his comfort and security and felt like home. She was also a piece of normal, something sane despite the insanity of her powers and past. He loved her. She was his best friend and having El as his girlfriend had always reassured him that he was normal. If he loved her, then it proved that he wasn't queer or strange or abnormal.

“B-but… I love you.” He said, almost uselessly. El smiled.

“I love you too.” She replied, simply. “We've just changed. But that hasn't. We're still friends, Mike, right?”  
Mike nodded, blindly. He took a deep breath.

“I just…” He scrubbed at his face and felt suddenly so drained. He didn't want to protest. He agreed with El, that was the problem. Their relationship had ended a long time ago, he just hadn't stopped to notice. He sighed.

“Okay.” He said, at last. “Okay. Let me. Process.” As if on auto pilot, he felt his body turn back towards Richie's truck and he walked away from the Hopper household. He needed a few minutes to think; the urgency regarding Will and that whole situation was still pressing on his mind but he chose to ignore it. El watched him go and seemed to notice that Mike had no bike on him, and had either stupidly walked all the way to hers or had been driven. Mike hadn't gotten around to getting his license yet, especially because Will seemed to enjoy driving people everywhere, revelling in the freedom a car gave him.  

“Did someone drive you here?” She called, confused, to Mike’s retreating back. Mike stopped in his tracks and spoke without thinking.

“Yeah. Something's come up with Will and Richie. Get Hopper and meet us at Joyce's in an hour. It's about the Upside Down. Tell him it's urgent.”

He continued towards the vehicle, feeling slightly guilty because he knew what he'd just said was incredibly vague and would panic her. But still, he knew it would do the trick and get everyone in one place.

El felt a chill run down her spine as she watched him go. What was going on?

After stumbling half blind around trees, Mike flung himself into the truck and sprawled across the back seats, staring up at the roof.

“I said to meet us at Will’s place in an hour.” He said, numbly. Will and Richie turned to stare at him.

“Dude, why?” Richie asked, annoyed. “What just happened? We're on a mission here! That's just wasting time!”

“She just broke up with me. I didn't really get a chance to talk.” Mike said and Richie shut up. Will looked distraught on Mike’s behalf. Richie, on the other hand, groaned and thumped his head against the steering wheel.

“Jesus, what a cluster fuck.” He moaned and Mike laughed bleakly.

“Sorry.” He said automatically and Will made a small, distressed noise of protest.

“I'm not even that upset.” Mike reassured him, and Richie and Will gave him identical, unconvinced looks. He ignored them. “I just. Need a second.”

He continued to stare resolutely at the truck roof, mentally burying his weird sense of loss under several feet of dirt, cement and repression. Put that emotion in a tightly sealed box along with the rest. Alongside his confusing sexuality crisis and all of his anger at his parents and the constant, overwhelming fear for his friends and future, stuck in this town. God, he needed to snap out of it. And therapy, he probably needed therapy.

“Sure, man.” Richie said, probably trying to sound sympathetic but panic for his friends turning his words sharp and sarcastic. “Take all the time you need.” Will fixed him with a Look. How he managed to convey disappointment, reproach and exasperation in a single facial expression was a mystery to Richie. But then, Richie was a man of words, not a man of Looks.  
  
“Mike,” Will said, consolingly. “You don't have to be in control and calm all of the time. No one's perfect. We have time if you want to talk to us.” He glanced at Richie. Richie made a face. Will always wanted to talk things out. The small boy had always trusted his family, particularly his Mom, and had grown up in a home where discussing your feelings was normal and expected. Plus, Will's initial resistance to therapy and opening up about his trauma had tended to make things worse. So his honesty and openness about his feelings was understandable. Unfortunately, he tended to try and get all of his friends to talk things through as well. Will was a big believer in the power of communication. Mike looked at Will a little disbelievingly.

“Um, no offence Will, but I don't really want to talk to you about my relationship with your sister.” Will laughed, but it was fond. He loved El like she was his family.

“She's not my actual sister, Mike. But fine. Are you okay?”

  
Impatient at all of the emotional bullcrap, Richie jumped in.

“Why'd she dump you Wheeler? I thought you guys were like, soulmates?”

Will glared at him. Whoops, that was probably insensitive. But Mike just shook his head. He looked a little shell-shocked.

“She wants us to be friends still?” Mike said, not really answering the question and Richie threw his hands up in defeat.

“Jeez, who knows what girls want. Girls are crazy dude.” He said, sagely. “Have you tried boys? That worked out pretty well for me”

“I think that's why she dumped me, actually.” Mike said, dully.

Despite his best efforts at remaining supportive and neutral (Will didn't really want to take sides in any argument that was between a girl who was essentially his sister and his best friend) Will couldn't help but gape at Mike.

“You're queer?" Will asked, incredulously. Richie didn't seem as shocked, but still looked surprised by Mike’s inadvertent, not-quite confession.

“I don't know. I just know I'm not _normal_.” Mike said heavily and then shook his head vigorously like a wet dog. “Anyway, now is really not the time for this. We should be making plans and focusing. Not talking about my relationship issues.”

Will had donned a protective, angry glare from the moment Mike had said “normal”, familiar with being the antonym of the word himself. Again, Richie stepped in before he could say anything.  
  
“Okay. We’ll leave it for now and go kick some ass and save my friends.” He said, placatingly, whilst Will frowned reproachfully at him. He turned in his seat and peered at Mike from the front.

“But you should know, dude, I’m pretty sure that I used to date one of my old friends, before Will. And he'd scream bloody murder if I did more than kiss him on his cute little baby cheeks. But he still loved us all a fucking ton. And he was pretty cool, and brave. So, just think about that.”

Mike stared at Richie as he turned back to the front, feeling completely disorientated and a bit like he'd been turned inside out. Since when was Richie so goddamn perceptive?

Richie caught his eye in the mirror as he revved up the engine.

“It's not about being normal Mikey boy. It's about being comfortable in your own skin.” He said, with so much confidence that Mike was inclined to believe him, and even Will seemed taken aback by Richie's stunningly insightful and helpful speech. For a long moment, Mike was speechless. He finally nodded, gratefully and Richie just smiled. He turned the radio on and they drove away.

At the Byers’, Will and Mike sat side by side on the couch whilst Richie attempted to flirt with Will’s Mom. (“Lasagne? Wow, Mrs B you're making my favourite? I'm so touched.”). Will nudged Mike’s leg with his knee and he glanced over.

“So earlier when Richie said his friend just liked holding hands and stuff…are you? Like that?” Will asked, awkwardly. “I mean, do you…how do you? What did he mean?”

  
Mike decided to take pity on Will, who'd started to stumble over his words and stutter a bit. He took a leaf from Richie's book, and went for the direct approach.

“I don't like sex.” Mike said plainly and Will blushed, to the roots of his hair and right down to the base of his neck. Mike watched the flush of his skin spread. Cute.

  
“Uh…y-you don't?” Will stammered, clearly regretting starting the conversation. Mike sighed.

“I don't know. It's complicated. I'm just, not really interested at the moment. In much of anything.” Will nodded.

“Okay.”

Mike relaxed completely.

“Yeah?” He said and Will peered up at him.

“Yeah.” He answered warmly and they both smiled stupidly at each other. Richie walked over and flung himself down between the two of them, shoving his feet into Mike’s lap and pulling on Will’s hand until it rested in his hair.

“Stop making eyes at each other.” Richie complained. They both blushed and Mike looked vaguely guilty but Richie was apparently unconcerned. He wriggled around on their laps until Mike managed to catch one of Richie's legs. He dug his thumb into the arch of his foot, making Richie swear loudly at him. Mike just rolled his eyes and worked his fingers in small circles on the rough soles of Richie's feet. Richie went still at that and collapsed bonelessly against them both. Will ran his fingers through Richie's hair and shared a smug, pleased look with Mike as Richie stopped fidgeting and started to make soft, sleepy noises of appreciation instead.

Max was the first to arrive (they'd summoned the Party through their walkie talkies) and grinned to see the three of them tangled up on the couch. She lifted the skateboard in her hands in their direction.

“Hey, now that you two are friends, can I start teaching you to skateboard at the same time rather than separately?” Max asked, settling on the arm of the couch. “It'll be hilarious to watch you both fail together.” Will snickered and Richie looked vaguely offended.

“Maxine, I have loved my evil clone, Michael, since the day we met.” All three of them turned and stared at him, raising their eyebrows.

“You called him Wheelie bin for about a month,” Max pointed out.

“Every time I spoke you'd scream that I was trying to kill you. As the evil clone.” Mike added, in a long-suffering tone.

“Plus, you said he was your least favourite of Will’s friends at least five times.” Max finished and Richie blinked innocently.

“Tough love?” He suggested with an angelic smile. Mike threw a cushion at him.

The rest of the party arrived, one by one. Dustin was dropped off by Steve, who'd taken his role as babysitter to a new level. Everyone chose not to mention it; Dustin liked to pretend that he couldn't stand Steve. They chatted for a bit, the three boys having decided to wait until everyone had turned up before explaining the reasons behind the second impromptu meeting of the week.

If anybody thought that Mike and Richie's sudden friendship was strange, no one mentioned it. Lucas _had_ raised his eyebrows when Will had left to go to the bathroom and, instead of complaining, Richie had simply rearranged himself on the couch so that his head lay in Mike’s lap instead. Mikes hand had automatically gone to Richie's hair and he'd made eye contact with Lucas, who'd fixed him with a pointed look. Mike had very deliberately averted his eyes.

It wasn't long before El finally arrived, Hopper in tow, and the relaxed atmosphere became much more tense. Will explained his trip to the Upside Down from earlier that day, in more detail than he had to Richie and Mike. Richie told them all about his patchy memory problems and how his friends seemed to be trapped in the Upside Down. He speculated that It might somehow be involved, as well. Will nodded along, and said how he'd also sensed the darkness that El had. All the while, Joyce watched worriedly from the side of the room.

Hopper interrupted every now and again, asking questions about particular details. Debates began to break out, as each person tried to come up with a solution or a game plan. El cleared her throat.

“I know we decided yesterday not to do this, but I think we need to visit the Upside Down.”

  
Hopper grimaced.

  
“I don't know, kiddo.” He said, slowly, and El huffed impatiently.

“Will and I both need to figure out what's going on.” She said, crossing her arms. “It's urgent now! Richie's friends need help.” Will sent El a grateful look.

“El’s right. We have to go to the Upside Down. No one deserves to be left in there.” He said and everyone went quiet. 

“But what'll you do when you get there? You think Richie's friends will just be there, waiting?” Jonathan asked, doubtfully.

“No.” Will answered, honestly. “If they have any sense, they'll be hiding. But El can find them, right?” El nodded and Will gestured at her as if to say 'See? Case closed.'

“So I open up the Upside Down, El finds Richie's friends, and then when we've got their location, you guys all come through and help us to rescue them.”

As Will talked, Mike noticed that Joyce grew steadily more agitated and nervous looking.

“Will, sweetie, I know you want to help. But going in there, just the two of you?” Joyce bit her lip and hugged herself, pale with worry. “You're just putting yourself in danger.”

“I know it's dangerous Mom.” Will said quietly. “But the doctors, they told us that the two of us are connected to the Upside Down. We're part of it now, whether we like it not. And it makes us virtually undetectable, they think.” He stared up at his Mom imploringly.

“We’re the only ones that can do this, Mom.”

Joyce looked to the ceiling as if in prayer. Hopper reached out to hold her arm, steadying her and comforting her. At the same moment, the beep of an egg timer went off, and they all jumped.

“That'll be dinner!” Joyce exclaimed, looking flustered but relieved to have an excuse to put the conversation on hold. Hopper faced them all.

“Right, kids. Let's eat and then we'll decide, okay?”

Richie sighed in resignation and they all grumbled in agreement. Except from Max and Dustin, who enthusiastically moved towards the dining table. Food was the top priority for both of them at any given time. They bickered good naturedly over dinner, with some discussion of how Will and El could enter the Upside Down safely. Every time it was brought up, Joyce would tense in her chair. Richie seemed torn between impatience and anxiety. His concern for Will's safety and his concern for his friends safety were clearly at odds with each other. Mike brushed Richie's ankle with his foot and he jumped. Luckily it went unnoticed by the rest of the table.

“Wills not a baby, Richie.” He reassured, in a hushed voice. “Nothing bad will happen. To him or El. We have to let them do this.” Richie swallowed and met his eyes.

“I know,” He hissed, aggressively spearing his vegetables. “I still don't have to like it.”

Mike couldn't argue with that. After they'd finished eating and had cleared away their plates, Hopper and Joyce stood up and commanded the groups attention. They'd been having a whispered conversation for the latter part of the meal, that they'd all tried desperately to snoop on.

“We think that the right thing to do for now is to take Will and El to the lab.” Joyce glanced at Hopper, who continued on for her.

“These people are the closest things we have to experts on the Upside Down. If Will and El are going in we're gonna need protective gear, maybe some weapons and a way of monitoring the situation.”

Richie scoffed.

  
“Really?” He demanded “You’re going to trust some random shady government guys? What the fuck?” Hopper stared him down calmly.

“I don't fully trust them. But we’ll be there the whole time and over the next few days we'll make sure nothing bad happens.”

“The next few days? The next few days?! My friends could be dead in a few days!”

Hopper’s face turned stern. “We have to hope they won't be.” He said. “I'm sorry kid, but we're going to take this slow to make sure El and Will are safe.”  
Richie laughed.

“I want them safe! You think I don't want Will to be safe? The safest thing would be to keep him away from that lab where they treat him like a rat experiment!” He was yelling now and he turned an accusing glare towards Joyce. “The only reason you make him go there is because you don't trust your own son not to become possessed again. Which is bullshit, by the way, because Will is stronger than all of us here! He'd rather die than be possessed again!”

Richie knew immediately after his rant that he'd put his foot in it again, from the way Will went still beside him. Because Will _had_ been fully prepared to die for his friends and family, and Hawkins. And it was a touchy subject, for everyone. He knew he was being unreasonable, but he was beyond panicking now.

“That's enough.” Hopper said sharply. “El, Will, go get your stuff. The four of us will get down there now. Richie, calm down. I promise I want to help you and your friends, we just need to be sensible here.” Will brushed the back of Richie's hand as he headed for his room and Richie looked at the floor. He was still so inexplicably angry. He glanced around at all of the others, then back to Hopper. What Hopper had said made sense, expect...

“The four of us?” He asked and Hopper raised his eyebrows.

“Yes?”

Richie frowned.

“I thought we were all going!” He said, anxiously. “That's the point, isn't it? You guys said that you do everything as a team!” Hopper snorted.

“Not when it's this dangerous.” He said. “You all need to stay out of harms way.”  
Richie looked outraged at this.

“B-but!” He spluttered. "You don't even know what my friends look like!” His hands trembled and he shoved them deep into his pockets.

“Uhhh… I thought you didn't know what they looked like either.” Lucas pointed out, unhelpfully.  
Richie swivelled on his feet and let out a loud string of expletives. He headed for the door.

“I'm going for a cigarette.” He muttered as he stalked out, slamming the door behind him. Mike got up to follow but Hopper grabbed him by the shoulder in warning.

  
“Kid, let him calm down,” He started but Mike shook him off.

“I know what I'm doing.” Mike insisted, even though he didn't at all. He had no clue why he was following Richie out or what he'd say. Hell, Richie had only just started to like him. He walked outside anyway, and shut the door behind him, far more gently. He looked around, shivering a bit at the night time chill.

  
“Piss off, Wheeler. Go home. Isn’t your Mommy wondering where her wonder boy son has gotten to?” Richie's voice was heavy and mean.

“I doubt it.” Mike said, slightly bitterly and with a shrug. “My parents don't really talk to me, much.”

Richie swore and kicked the side of the porch, cursing when he failed once more in lighting his cigarette.

“Can anyone be happy in this fucking hell hole of a town? Jesus, fuck.”He said, angrily. He shook his lighter and glared at the offending object. “Perfect Mike Wheeler, all neglected and alone just like me.”

Richie's lighter clicked into place and a flame flared to life. He moved to hold the flame up to his cigarette but the next second the wind picked up and the flame flickered and died. Richie cursed again and threw the lighter and cigarette to the floor, his fists clenching and unclenching at his sides. He looked ready to throw a punch and it didn't look as if he cared who he hit.

“You and Joyce and Hopper. The lot of you. None of you fucking get it. We need to do something right now!”

He lurched forwards on his feet a little bit, and Mike fought the instinct to duck or move out the way, knowing that his flinching would only offend Richie, who swore to the moon and back that would never, ever hurt anyone- especially his friends.

“Richie, stop.” Mike said, calmly. “I know you're frustrated and worried about Will and your friends, but stop taking your anger out on me and everyone else. We want to help too but we don't want you, or anyone, to die in the process!”

For a second, Mike thought Richie would actually punch him. His breathing was heavy and fast. And then he brought his hand to his face and scrubbed at it wearily. All life seemed to leave his body and he sagged against the wall. Mike watched silently as Richie slid down the wall to land on the floor, his legs sprawled out as he stared up at nothing. Mike approached carefully and settled himself next to Richie, who eyed Mike out of the corner of his eye.

“So, shitty parents too, huh?” He said, with a resigned smile and Mike blinked at him.

“They're okay,” Mike shrugged, a little poleaxed by the direction Richie had decided to take the conversation in. “They just ignore me.”

He felt silly saying it, like a whiny kid trying to get it's Moms attention. Richie seemed to understand though.

“Yeah.” Richie whispered, staring at nothing.

“It's weird, right?” Mike offered. “How much Joyce fusses?” Richie said nothing. Mike ploughed on anyway.

“I used to hate Will for it,” Mike admitted, shame-faced. “She loves him so much. So I used to tease him all the time for it.” Richie nodded.

“Yeah,” Richie agreed on an exhale. “I knew someone with an overprotective Mom, like that. Worse, actually. Their Mom was a bitch.”

Mike digested this in silence, privately noting how much more Rochie seemed to remember about his recent past.

And then  
“I'm sorry Mikey boy. I've just never really met any decent adults before. We were used to doing things on our own.” Mike didn't ask who the “we” was. He could guess.

“I thought the same when we were trying to find Will.” Mike said, constantly trying to find the middle ground between the two of them. “But the adults are trying to keep us safe. And your friends. We have to work together. We just have to trust them, Tozier.” Richie slumped a little further down the wall and rested his head on Mike's shoulder.

“You know what, Wheeler?” Richie said and Mike hummed inquisitively.

“You're not half bad.”

Mike huffed out a laugh and thanked him sarcastically. Light swept across the porch as the door opened and Mike turned to see Will backing out of the door, talking to someone as he exited the house.

“Mom, just give me five minutes okay? I'll be five minutes. Yes mom. I packed a toothbrush. Okay. Uh huh.” He closed the door on her. Will turned to them both and Richie gestured to the floor where they both sat. Will say cross legged opposite them.

“Sorry Will.” Richie muttered and Will shook his head.

“It's okay Richie.” He assured him and took his hand. “We're going in a minute. But it's going to be fine.” He squeezed Richie's hand, hard.

“I promise you I'll find them.” He whispered and Richie stared into his eyes. “I swear it Richie.” Richie jerked his head in ascent. 

Mike swallowed.

“You better come back Will. I won't be able to handle it if you go missing again.” Mike said fiercely, embarrassed by the wetness in his eyes. “You and El, you both come back safe, okay?” Will gave a shuddering laugh and blushed under the two boys scrutiny.

“Okay.” He agreed.

Inside the house, El was calling Will’s name and they all shared a collective sigh. He shuffled so that he was kneeling and rocked back onto his heels. His eyes flicked indecisively between the two of them for all of three seconds before he leaned in determinedly. He pressed a kiss to the corner of Mike’s lips, his long, slender fingers holding his chin in place. Mike's eyes fluttered close in shock. Then, Will drew back and reached over to kiss Richie squarely on the mouth, hard. He lingered for a moment after, blushing under their disbelieving gazes. Without saying another word, he scrambled to his feet and disappeared back inside. Mike stared at the space he'd just been sat in, open mouthed. He turned to Richie, convinced it was all a fever dream. For once, Richie seemed equally as stunned. They blinked confusedly at each other each other; Mike literally had no idea how he was supposed to react And then, as if on cue, they both burst out into identical fits of laughter.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay the losers club were meant to be officially Here in this but it was taking too long to write so I cut it down so I could give yall an update still. They'll be here properly soon! And then shit will go Down xx  
> Find me @oedipus-tozier on tumblr if u wanna talk ryers, it, stranger things etc.

Noise. Shapes and shadows. Somewhere, Will was screaming and El scrambled to reach him, but it was too dark, too confusingly loud. Her hands shook and she could feel blood, hot and thick, pooling at the base of her nose. She couldn't keep it open much longer.

Around her, were strangers. Richie's friends. They were yelling and brandishing makeshift weapons at the creatures that jumped out at them. They'd pulled lighters out of nowhere and had made blazing fire torches, setting the place aflame. A wall of fire had spread through the cold slime of the Upside Down and the place was shuddering and crackling around them.

Where was Will?

She moved forwards, blindly, but felt someone grab her and pull her back.

“What the fuck? Get back!” They shouted and she wanted to fling them aside. Get to Will. That was her only thought right now. Will. The two of them had been separated in the chaos, having stumbled from the lab right into the middle of a fight scene. Richie's friends vs. the Upside Down. El knew that the Upside Down always won, eventually. She couldn't let it take Will, again. 

But she couldn't hold the portal open and move forward. There were too many people and too many creatures. Too much pressure on her aching head. She closed her eyes and sank to her knees.

“C-can't” She gasped, clutching her head. She could feel her pulse pounding; the sound of it filled her ears. She couldn't do this.

“What's wrong with her?”

“She's bleeding, Bill, who the hell is she?!”

“Richie sent her, okay, I know he did.”

El tried to get to her feet, but she lurched and stumbled. Squinting, she shielded her eyes against the glare of the flames, hopelessness washing through her in a wave. They had to get out. Behind her, the arguing and quips had died down, the sheer volume of creatures becoming impossible to defend against. She marched towards the group and made a slashing motion with her wrist as she advanced. The portal behind them tore open wider and she gritted her teeth at the effort. The group startled at the sudden brightness, as beams of light cut through the shadows and smoke. One of the boys, small and angry-looking, gaped at her outstretched hand.

You have to leave!” She choked out, eyes streaming from the smoke. “I can't keep the portal open much longer.”

There was a split second pause as they all stared between her and the portal, their faces a picture of astonishment and relief. And then they all jumped into action at once, scrambling towards the light. She watched them, satisfied, and then turned back to the fire. She'd burn before leaving Will behind in this hell. But before she could even take a step, strong arms wrapped tightly around her waist and she was hauled back. She screamed.

“No! No! Will! No, let me go!” She cried, pushing futilely at the arms wrapped around her. “LET ME GO!” She scraped her nails into the arms that held her, scratching at whatever she could reach, but her captor barely flinched.

“We’re surrounded! I'm sorry,” came a hoarse, distressed voice in her ear. “It'd be suicide to stay. We have to go!”

The flames leapt higher and higher, and the pounding in her head had reached a crescendo that drowned out nearly all other sounds. She felt herself go limp and her eyes rolled back, as she tipped closer to the edge of unconsciousness. Whoever was holding her tripped a little and stumbled. Someone else shouted, and she couldn't make out what they were saying anymore. She felt, suddenly, painfully sure that they were going to die. It felt as if energy was being ripped from her body but she was numb to the pain.

And then there was light. Blinding, white light and she sucked in a lungful of clean, sterile air. Faces peered down at her, and although everything was fuzzy and distorted, she could still make out the anxious lines etched into Joyce's face.

“Sweetie?”

The word was laced with so much concern and care that El had to look away. Guilt and shame coursed through her, and she blinked back tears.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered, brokenly. “I'm so sorry.”

She caught one last glimpse of them all, family and strangers standing around her in various states of confusion and worry, before everything faded to black and she passed out.

 

* * *

 

Richie was restless. He was moving around like a barely contained hurricane and he hadn't stopped talking since he and Mike had stepped back inside. He switched between loudly monologuing his worries and cracking awful, poorly timed jokes. They all tried not to notice the way that he hovered around the phone on the wall, practically vibrating with nervous energy.

Finally, when Richie had almost ripped Steve's head off for suggesting they watch a movie to distract themselves, Mike had snapped.

“Shit, okay, fine!” He groaned, tiredly. “Come on Richie. Let's go check on them.” Richie lit up, although his anxious expression didn't fade, so he looked completely manic.

“Really?!”

“Yes. It's either that or murder you.” Mike said, but the joke was half-hearted. His own heart felt tight. It had been hours. Mike shrugged on his jacket and glanced over at Steve, although he would've gone with or without his permission. He'd expected outcry, but the Party all wore relieved expressions at Mike's decision to leave; Richie's anxiety and stress was catching.

"Just let us know if you need back up, okay, kid?" Steve said and Mike nodded, snatching up his supercom and a flashlight, which he handed to Richie. Steve nodded approvingly.

Max, who'd claimed ownership of the infamous nail covered baseball bat, cleared her throat. Mike spared her a quick look and she smiled at him, tightly, from where she was leaning into Lucas.

“Take the bat, dude.” She said, deceptively casual, and Mike hesitated. Then he thought of Will, and the Upside Down. The demadogs. He picked the bat up. Richie, meanwhile, scrambled for his keys but Mike swiftly reached over and plucked them from his hands.

“I don't think so. You are not driving like this.”

“What are you on about Mikey-moo? I’m fine and dandy, I'm driving!” Richie insisted, his eye twitching slightly, and the entire Party just stared at him in disbelief.

“I'm driving.” Mike said, firmly. Richie sighed and his shoulders slumped slightly.

“Fine. Whatever. Let's just go.”

The car journey was oddly silent, and Mike’s hands were gripped iron tight onto the steering wheel, religiously at ten and two for the whole ride. Richie’s leg bounced anxiously and he fidgeted with his seatbelt every ten seconds, but other than that he was silent.

“I fucking hate this place,” Richie muttered, as Mike swung through the unmanned gates of the all-new, unofficial Hawkins lab. It was a much smaller building, off-road and less conspicuous, to avoid the attention of the press that had chased them out of Hawkins last time. The secrecy seemed pretty pointless to Mike, who was sure that with enough money and threats, that the Government could do as they pleased, regardless. They abandoned the car, parked across three spaces haphazardly, Mike's urgency in finding Will winning out over his perfectionist streak. Joyce's car was a few metres away and he stared at it for a moment, half expecting El and Will to get out from the back. 

The building in front of them was only half-lit and seemed virtually abandoned, and had the look of an old school. They approached the doors, and Mike frowned at the lack of people around. He'd expected it to be harder to get in. But then, he supposed that this whole new gig was run by Dr Owens, who'd turned out to be one of the good guys. Or, at least, a better guy than they'd thought. It made sense that he'd forfeit the flashy security and go with this set up, over a conspicuous, shiny laboratory. 

“Where are the guards?” Richie asked, biting at the skin around his nails absently. Mike shrugged and pushed at the door. It was locked.

“Guess they went home,” Mike said. “It's after midnight.” He fished around in his pockets for something they could use to pick the lock. Nothing. 

“Hey, can you pick locks at all?” He asked and Richie shook his head, groaning in frustration.

“Fuck, can't we just smash the glass or something?” Richie asked and Mike fixed him with a look.

“Yes, Rich, that's the best way to sneak into government property. Just smash open the doors.” Mike said. It came out blunter than he'd intended, but everything about the night had set him on edge. The nerves had gotten to him. Richie glared at him and kicked at the door.

“Well, how do we get in? Any bright ideas? Will could be in danger!” Richie swallowed, and exhaled sharply. Above them, a light flickered slightly and Mike narrowed his eyes at it suspiciously. Mike and Richie both startled as the lights on the second floor of the building began to flicker, in an ominously familiar way. Oh god. 

Mike took a step forward and scrunched up his nose. He could've sworn he'd just heard someone shouting. He looked at Richie, who'd gone still. 

"Did you hear that?" He asked, and Richie nodded and bounced a little on his feet, rocking back onto his heels. He looked around, frantically, and grabbed a rock from the ground. Mike had a split second to jump back before Richie had pulled his arm back and hurled it at the door, without hesitation. It smashed through the glass with a loud and satisfying shatter.

"Nice throw." Mike muttered, appreciatively. He scanned the ground for his own rock, no longer caring about subtly or logic- he was just desperate to get inside and help, find Will and get the hell back to safety. He found a large stone and flung it as hard as he could, and the pane of glass fell out of the door frame completely. The two of them exchanged grins. 

Inside, there was definitely shouting now and it sounded increasingly frantic. And then, there was a scream. A very familiar sounding scream. Mike felt fear pierce his gut, icy cold. 

"Mrs B" Richie breathed, and they both shared horrified looks. 

Richie was through the door before Mike could even blink, and Mike was hot on his heels. The lights weren't on in this part of the building, so Mike pulled out his flashlight. He felt fingers lace through his own and then he flinched when he heard yelling again. Yelling was never good. 

"Will." Mike said, desperately, unable to say anything else and Richie shot him a weak, commiserating smile. He understood. Richie pulled him by the hand and they ran towards the sounds of shouting, hearts pounding. But then, out of the corner of his eye, Mike saw a light flicker in the hallway to his left. Then it glowed. Mike stopped, abruptly, pulling Richie to a standstill, too. Richie made an impatient noise but Mike shushed him, staring at the glowing lights. 

"Richie, look." He said, pointing down the corridor. The ceiling lights were methodically glowing in order, turning off one by one, and then back on again. Understanding dawned in Richie's eyes, remembering Will's account of how he'd communicated with lights before, trapped in the Upside Down. Mike squeezed his hand. He cleared his throat and spoke to the lights. 

"Will, if that's you, blink the lights twice," Mike said, clearly and slowly. They held their breath. And then the light blinked. Once. Twice. 

Richie let out a choked gasp and his grip on Mike's hand went slightly lax. 

"Will? Are you alone?" Two blinks. Richie gritted his teeth and nodded, resolutely.

"T-trapped?"

Blink. Blink. Mike closed his eyes, feeling hopeless. 

"Can we help you? Will, sweetheart, we have to help you." Two blinks, again. Richie took a deep, shuddering breath. He knew they should be looking for Hopper and Joyce, El too, and his friends. Back up was always the best way to deal with the Upside Down. But Will was right here, albeit on the Otherside, and Richie was not going to leave him. 

"Okay," Richie said, with as much confidence as he could manage. "How? How do we help you?" The lights glowed again, in order, illuminating a path down the corridor, light by light. 

"He wants us to follow." Mike realised, suddenly. "We have to follow the lights." Richie stared confusedly at a suddenly excited and enthusiastic Mike. 

"This is the lab, Richie!" Mike explained, impatiently. "There's cracks and portals to the Upside Down everywhere. It's what they do."

"They can't leave it alone." Richie agreed, bitterly, still confused. 

"Exactly." Mike said, nodding. "So we can pull Will out. He's leading us to a crack in the wall." Richie 'ahh-ed' in understanding, his expression marginally less despairing. The lights of the corridor glowed bright white and the boy's laughed, shielding their eyes a little. _Yes,_ blinked the lights. _Yes, yes, yes._

"Okay, we're coming, Will, hold on!" Richie yelled, hope and relief curling tentatively round his heart. 

And they sprinted down the corridor, following Will's directions. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, super sorry if this is slow to update. This was like, the 2nd/3rd fic I ever wrote. And now when I reread it I'm like "oh jeez what was I doing" so it's hard not to give up on it/rewrite the whole thing. I just hope that as I practise, each chapter gets better!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They follow Will’s lights. (This isn’t edited much so im sorry in advance, absolutely feel free to point out all my many mistakes)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was gonna be a lot longer, half Richie and Mike & half El+ the Losers + Hopper+ Joyce, from where I left them.  
> But the second part turned out to be way way longer than I thought it’d be.  
> So, I give you this chapter, an update (finally) and a really long chapter will hopefully be up tomorrow.

Richie and Mike followed the blinking lights down the first corridor. Then round a corner and down another corridor. And another corridor. With each step they took, Mike felt some of the hope that had started to burn in his chest fade slightly. But the lights kept blinking. Two for yes, every time Richie said Will’s name, or muttered a question. But there was no sign of him or anything else. No cracks or portals to the Upside Down. Just the strange flickering lights and the sound of their own hurried footsteps.

The earlier screaming, unmistakably Joyce Byers, weighed on Mike’s mind uncomfortably. They hadn’t heard a sound since, and the quiet of the lab seemed unnatural. 

“Richie?” He whispered, as they kept walking. “Earlier, the screaming.” 

Richie was silent.

”What if she needs us? What if this isn’t Will?”

Richie stopped abruptly and glared at Mike, frustratedly. 

“Will, is that you? Blink twice for yes.” 

The lights glowed twice, brightly. Blink. Blink. Richie gave Mike a pointed look. 

“It’s Will.” He said, firmly. Confidently. “We’re saving Will, finding everyone else and getting out of here.” He sounded determined, but his voice wavered as he spoke. Mike bit his lip but he nodded, the blinking of artificial lights everywhere casting shadows and making everything glow luminescent.

”I just have a bad feeling...” Mike muttered, shuddering a little.

”Everything about this situation feels pretty fucking bad, Mike!” Richie snapped back. As if on cue, like he’d been heard by someone, the lights shut off, plunging them into darkness. 

 

“Fuck!”

 

”Shit.“

Mike tightened his hold on Richie’s hand and they stayed standing still, blinking in the darkness. It was really, unnaturally dark. Completely pitch black.

 

“Is it me, or are our eyes not adjusting to the dark?” Mike asked, uncertainly.

Richie squeezed his hand. Minutes passed. They still couldn’t see a single thing. Not that Richie could see very well normally, but still.

”This isn’t normal.” Richie murmured. Mike rolled his eyes. No shit sherlock. And then he raised his voice slightly.

”Will?” He asked, panicked. “Are you still there?”

Nothing. There was no blinking light to greet them or reassure them. Mike felt a sinking sensation in his stomach, this was really, most definitely, not good. Next to him, Richie swore. He pulled on Mike’s arm, and they drew closer to the corridor walls. Mike immediately understood and followed Richie’s lead, feeling along the wall blindly so that they could both still walk through the dark. 

It was so dark.

And then, at the end of the corridor a single light blinked on. It looked strangely far away, but it cast enough light back down to them that Mike could make out Richie’s features and the doors and walls. Richie moved immediately towards the light.

”Richie!” Mike hissed in protest, yanking him back. Richie looked at him.

”What?” Richie demanded, impatiently. He was still convinced that the light was Will. 

“Don’t go towards the weird suspicious light you fucking moron.” 

Richie rolled his eyes and turned away from Mike. Mike yanked him back again.

”Hey!” 

Mike ignored him, unable to shake the ominous feeling that they were being watched or followed. Pissed off and scared, scared for _his boyfriend_ , Richie untangled their hands and stepped away.

”I’m finding Will.” Richie whispered, fiercely. “Even if you’re too much of a pussy to help.” 

Mike scowled. Before the pair of them could descend into another argument, someone else spoke, so quietly that it was barely a whisper. 

“Richie...”

 

They both jumped, looking wildly around in a way that was almost comical. But there was nobody else around.

 

“Tell me you heard that.” Richie said, tense. Mike nodded slowly.

“Yeah. I heard that.”

The voice came again, whispering, and it sounded impossibly close, as if there was someone standing right to them, whispering in both of their ears. “Richie” was all the voice whispered, “Richie, Richie, Richie, Richie,” Richie exhaled sharply. 

“Will?” He asked. “Who’s there? How do you know my name?” 

The whispering continued and Mike broke out from his frozen state, he’d turned practically immobile from fear, and moved back closer to Richie. He pulled Richie’s arm and they both started slowly edging backwards, away from the light and back in the direction that they came from.

 

They had to leave, Mike thought. They had to run and try to find Joyce and Hopper. If they weren’t stuck in the Upside Down, too.

And then, abruptly, the whispering stopped.

 

“Richie?”

The voice sounded as if it came from above them. Mike checked their surroundings frantically. He turned to Richie.

”Richie we have to _run_!” He said urgently, freaked by the voices around them but uncaring as to whatever the hell the voice itself was. Disembodied voices were always bad, and you should always run from them. You didn’t have to be a genius to know that. But Richie-the useless idiot who was going to get them both killed- was holding himself as still as a statue, looking more frightened than Mike had ever seen him.

 

”I’m offended, Richie,” The voice said. It was an eerily pleasant and almost musical voice; it sounded conversational. “I thought you’d remember me.”

Richie’s face took on a horrified expression and the urge to run, run, run took Mike over completely.

”The clown.” Richie said. He looked confused and his nose was scrunched up, like the way he looked when he was trying to remember his friends. 

“That’s right,” The voice coaxed, crooning. “You remember now...”

Under his breath, so quietly Mike nearly didn’t hear, Richie said:

”Oh my god. We’re gonna die.”

The voice started giggling and, along with it, the lights began to flicker again, erratically. Mike stared.

”Richie? Who the fuck is that? What is it?” 

Richie looked at Mike with wide, scared eyes. 

“I don’t know how It’s here. I thought me and my friends had killed it.” 

Oh no. Oh god. Mike thought back to the “bits and pieces” story Richie had recounted for them only a few days ago. Children missing in Derry. A murder clown. He felt vaguely sick. Richie squared his shoulders. His eyes looked defeated but angry, as if he was ready to go down bitching and kicking and biting. And he nodded at Mike.

”Yeah.” He said, sounding as sick as Mike felt. “It’s Pennywise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oedipus-Tozier on tumblr!! Say hi if u wanna!  
> Leave a comment if u wanna! & Tell me if there’s anything in particular you want to see and I can try and grant your wishes.  
> xxx


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